It all started with a thought, “How do we care for the people who sort our waste?”
The Forgotten Reality of Waste-Management Work in India
The work is rough. Anyone who has spent even a few minutes in a waste unit knows it. The smell hits first. Then the heat. Then the feeling that your spine is folding beyond what it should. Our team stays in a difficult posture for hours sorting, picking, checking the bottoms of waste packets, and pulling apart layers stuck together by old food. It’s tiring in a way that doesn’t show up in photographs.
Waste management work sits at the bottom of India’s labour landscape. Millions of people work in this sector, yet they hardly get counted. Municipal systems manage to record some of it, but the rest happens informally. Therefore, most hazards go unreported, sickness and injuries ignored.
The waste management training happens rarely, but the work keeps the town running, and the workers remain at the edge of everyone’s attention.
Also Read: The Green Mile Story: Darjeeling’s Zero Waste Revolution
Why TIEEDI Brought Yoga to Waste Workers
At TIEEDI, we try to meet this reality with honesty. We cannot erase the difficulty of the work, but we can ask what care looks like in a place that depends on these hands. Yoga and movement sessions began as an experiment. One hour where the team could stretch, breathe, and untie the knots that build up across the week. The difference was visible almost immediately. They had fewer aches, better concentration, and overall, a refreshing mood.
The People Behind the Sessions
The sessions are generously led by Ms. Shakuntala Devulapally. She first came to TIEEDI as a guest, curious about the forest and our waste segregation work. Over a few conversations with the Green Mile team and then the Swacchata Praharis in Takdah, she understood the physical strain this work places on the body. Since then, she has held these sessions week after week, along with Seema Gadia, Prarthna Kalra, and Nirmallya Kar, keeping the practice consistent even on days when schedules or energy made it difficult.
If you wish to help or contribute to our initiative, you can directly support the instructor fees. Every penny goes straight into keeping the sessions steady for the people who do this work every day. Make a difference today! Write to us or reach out through the Zero Waste Andolan page for details.
